Automated indoor growing apparatuses and related methods

ABSTRACT

An indoor growing facility includes an enclosed structure defined by one or more first walls and a growing shell defining a grow zone positioned in the enclosed structure. The growing shell defined by one or more second walls. The indoor growing facility also includes at least one environmental control component positioned inside the enclosed structure and outside the growing shell.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.63/270,002, filed on Oct. 20, 2021 and U.S. Provisional Application No.63/301,813, filed on Jan. 21, 2022. The entire disclosures of each ofthe above applications are incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD

The present disclosure relates to automated indoor growing facilities,apparatuses and related methods.

BACKGROUND

This section provides background information related to the presentdisclosure which is not necessarily prior art.

Global food production systems need to address significant challenges inthe coming decades. Finding ways to feed a growing global populationwhilst reducing environmental impact of agricultural activities is ofcritical importance. Controlled environment agriculture (CEA), whichincludes greenhouses and indoor farming, offers a realistic alternativeto conventional production for some crops. Indoor farming allows forfaster, more controlled production, irrespective of season. Further,indoor farming is not vulnerable to other environmental variability suchas pests, pollution, heavy metals, and pathogens. Indoor farming canalso reduce environmental impact offering no loss of nutrient, reducedland requirement, better control of waste, less production loss, reducedtransportation cost, and reduced clean water usage. Therefore, indoorfarming can help to address the significant challenges.

Current methods and systems for indoor farming, however, are relativelyexpensive to implement and do not efficiently utilize the availablespace within a room or enclosure for growing crops. For example, toimplement an indoor farming system, an enclosure or container must beprovided and thereafter configured for growing crops or plants in acontrollable environment. Environmental parameters such as lighting,temperature, humidity, irrigation and airflow are controllable within anenclosure but existing systems and methods suffer from many drawbacks.One such drawback is that existing systems and methods requirerelatively expensive sensor and control systems. Additionally, existingsystems require a large size and such space is inefficiently allocated.Furthermore, layouts of existing spaces can result in variations inairflow and other environmental conditions that result in reduced yieldsof usable crops. Still further, the resources used to produce the cropsare inefficiently utilized resulting in higher costs and reduced yields.Therefore, there exists a need for improved systems, apparatuses andmethods for indoor farming.

SUMMARY

This section provides a general summary of the disclosure, and is not acomprehensive disclosure of its full scope or all of its features.

The present disclosure provides apparatuses and methods for the indoorgrowing and automated growing of plants and crops. The apparatuses andmethods of the present disclosure provide improvements in efficiency,yield, and cost over existing or traditional methods and apparatuses.The apparatuses and methods of the present disclosure may result in lessresources that are required to yield mature plants and require lessspace, land, manpower while providing improved traceability,transparency and sustainability over existing or traditional apparatusesand methods.

The apparatuses and methods of the present disclosure may provide anindoor facility in which plants can be grown from seeds through matureplants that can be harvested and packaged for delivery to end users andcustomers. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an indoorgrowing facility is provided. The facility may include one or more zonesfor the maturation of a plant. The zones may be enclosed or separatechambers in an indoor growing facility. The zones may include a seedingzone, a germination zone, a propagation zone, a transplanting zone, agrow zone, a harvesting zone, a mixing zone and a packing zone. Eachzone can be located in a defined area or chamber in the growingfacility.

In some embodiments, the grow zone is an enclosed chamber positionedinside an indoor growing facility. The grow zone can be partitioned orseparated into one or more growing pathways. Each pathway can bepartitioned from adjacent pathways to allow each pathway to havepredetermined environmental characteristics such as airflow,temperature, humidity, light exposure, irrigation and the like.

The grow zone may include various environment controls and relatedequipment that provide improvements over existing or traditional farmingequipment and methods. In some embodiments, the environmental controlsof the growing chamber may include dual purpose dry coolers that canoperate in various modes of operation to provide heating of the growingchamber and cooling of the growing chamber. Such dual modes of operationmay be provided when external conditions outside of the indoor farmingfacility have suitable environmental conditions such as temperaturesthat are greater than a predetermined temperature or temperatures thatare less than a predetermined temperature.

In some embodiments, the indoor growing facility may include a combinedgrowing and propagation zone. Such a combination can take advantage ofthe environmentally controlled grow zone to provide environmentalconditions suitable for propagation. This can eliminate or reduce theneed for redundant environment controls for separated growing andpropagation areas.

In other embodiments, the grow zone can include air handling equipmentthat may include one or more plenum assemblies and one or more returnassemblies. The plenum assemblies may include one or more air supplyconduits that may separate or otherwise guide air flow from a single airsource to the one or more growing pathways in the grow zone. The plenumassemblies can provide an air flow that has desirable characteristicsfor the growing plants. The return assemblies can be positioned in thegrow zone to collect and return air from the grow zone to the airhandling equipment. The combination of the plenum and return assembliescan provide a stable air flow such as a laminar flow.

The air handling equipment may also include one or more aircharacteristic controls that may be used to measure and/or modify thecharacteristics of the air flow provided to the growing chamber. The airhandling equipment may operate to measure and control the volumetricflow rate, the temperature, the humidity and the like of the air flow.Heat pumps, heat exchangers, and heat exchange fluids can be used tomodify the characteristics of the air flow as may be desirable foroptimal growing conditions.

The equipment that operates to control the conditions of the grow zonecan be packaged into modular assemblies. Such modular assemblies can befabricated at a manufacturing location and then delivered to a buildingsite of the indoor growing facility. In this manner, the indoor growingfacility can be easily assembled. Such modular assemblies also allow acapacity of the indoor growing facility to be increased or to be scaledto various sizes as may be desirable or allowed by local building sitesand/or geographic restrictions.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an indoor growingfacility is provided. The indoor growing facility may include anenclosed structure defined by one or more first walls and a growingshell defining a grow zone positioned in the enclosed structure. Thegrowing shell may be defined by one or more second walls. The indoorgrowing facility may also include at least one environmental controlcomponent positioned inside the enclosed structure and outside thegrowing shell.

In one aspect, the one or more first walls may separate an interiorspace of the indoor growing facility from an ambient externalenvironment.

In another aspect, the indoor growing facility may also include apropagation zone positioned adjacent the grow zone in the growing shell.

In another aspect, the propagation zone may include a first growingstructure that includes a plurality of rows for holding plants during afirst stage of plant growth and the growing zone may include a secondgrowing structure that includes a plurality of rows for holding plantsduring a second stage of plant growth. The first growing structure maybe separated from the second growing structure by a transportation lanein the growing shell.

In another aspect, the indoor growing facility may also include agermination zone positioned proximate the propagation zone in theenclosed structure and outside the growing shell.

In another aspect, the indoor growing facility may also include aharvesting zone positioned proximate the grow zone in the enclosedstructure and outside the growing shell.

In another aspect, the indoor growing facility may also include atransplanting zone configured to receive germinated plants from thegermination zone and to provide transplanted plants to the propagationzone.

In another aspect, the at least one environmental control component mayinclude an air handling unit and a heat pump.

In another aspect, the at least one environmental control component maybe coupled to a dry cooler positioned outside the enclosed structure inan ambient environment.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a growing structure foruse in an indoor growing facility is provided. The growing structure mayinclude a plurality of vertical barriers and a plurality of horizontalbarriers defining an array of grow pathways and a plenum wall positionedon a first side of the growing structure configured to supply an airflow into each of the grow pathways. The growing structure may alsoinclude a return wall positioned at a second side of the growingstructure opposite to the first side configured to return air from thegrowing structure to the first side.

In one aspect, the growing structure may also include a loading lanepositioned adjacent the array of grow pathways and a loading elevatorpositioned in the loading lane, wherein the loading elevator isconfigured to move in the loading lane to selectively load plants intoone grow pathway of the array of grow pathways.

In another aspect, the loading lane may be positioned between the arrayof grow pathways and the return wall.

In another aspect, the growing structure may include an unloading lanepositioned adjacent the array of grow pathways and an unloading elevatorpositioned in the unloading lane, wherein the unloading lane ispositioned on a side of the array of grow pathways opposite to theloading lane.

In another aspect, the growing structure may include a propagation zonepositioned between the loading zone and the return wall. The propagationzone may include a plurality of rows for supporting plants during apropagation stage of growth.

In another aspect, the growing structure may also include at least oneair handler in communication with the plenum wall to provide the airflow.

In another aspect, the plenum wall may be coupled to a distributionassembly to separate air flow from an air handler into each grow pathwayof the array of grow pathways.

In another aspect, the plenum wall may include a plurality of manifolds,each manifold of the plurality of manifolds positioned adjacent to oneanother to form the plenum wall.

In another aspect, each manifold of the plurality of manifolds mayinclude a plurality of vents through which air flow exits each manifold.Each vent of the plurality of vents may be aligned with one grow pathwayof the array of grow pathways.

In another aspect, each manifold of the plurality of manifolds mayinclude a diverter positioned centrally between the plurality of vents.The diverter may have a sloped surface to guide airflow toward each ventof the plurality of vents.

In another aspect, the distribution assembly may include a plurality ofchannels coupled between the air handler and the plenum wall to separateair flow, wherein a number of the plurality of channels corresponds to anumber of the plurality of manifolds. Each channel of the plurality ofchannels may be coupled to one manifold of the plurality of manifolds.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an environmental controlapparatus for use with an indoor growing facility is provided. Theenvironmental control apparatus may include at least one air handlerconfigured to supply an air flow to an enclosed grow zone and at leastone heat pump coupled to the at least one air handler and to at leastone dry cooler. The at least one heat pump may be operated in a firstmode of operation in which a heat exchange fluid is cooled by the drycooler and used to cool the air flow to remove moisture before the airhandler supplies the air flow to the enclosed grow zone.

In one aspect, the at least one air handler and the at least one heatpump are positioned in an outer structure enclosing the grow zone. Theouter structure may also separate the grow zone, the at least one airhandler, and the at least one heat pump from an ambient externalenvironment.

In another aspect, the at least one dry cooler is located outside theouter structure in the ambient external environment.

In another aspect, the at least one heat pump may be operated to heatthe air flow after moisture is removed before the air flow is suppliedto the grow zone.

In another aspect, the ventilation system may also include a cold fluidloop and a warm fluid loop each containing the heat exchange fluid. Thecold fluid loop and the warm fluid loop fluidly may be coupled to the atleast one air handler and to the at least one heat pump to cool and heatthe air flow, respectively.

In another aspect, the at least one heat pump may be operated in asecond mode of operation in which heat exchange fluid from the warmfluid loop is mixed with the heat exchange fluid in the cold fluid loopto maintain a temperature of the air flow above a dew point.

In another aspect, the air flow is not heated before the air flow issupplied to the grow zone in the second mode of operation.

In another aspect, the moisture that may be removed from the airflow inthe first mode of operation is supplied to an irrigation system coupledto the grow zone.

In another aspect, the first mode of operation operates to removemoisture to maintain a predetermined humidity level in the grow zone.

In another aspect, the second mode of operation operates at a lowerenergy consumption than the first mode of operation.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an indoor growingfacility is provided. The indoor growing facility may include a climatecontrol apparatus configured to produce a plurality of streams ofairflow. Each stream of airflow may have predetermined climateconditions. The indoor growing facility may also include a plurality ofgrowing pathways wherein each growing pathway of the plurality ofgrowing pathways is isolated from an adjacent growing pathway to allowintroduction of a stream of airflow of the plurality of streams ofairflow into each growing pathway.

In one aspect, each stream of airflow of the plurality of streams ofairflow may have substantially similar climate conditions.

In another aspect, the predetermined climate conditions comprise airspeed, temperature, and humidity.

In another aspect, the climate control apparatus may include an airhandler coupled to a distribution assembly. The distribution assemblymay include a plurality of channels to separate and divide an initialairflow into the plurality of streams of airflow.

In another aspect, the distribution assembly may include a plurality ofmanifolds coupled to the plurality of channels. Each manifold of theplurality of manifolds may include at least one vent configured tointroduce one stream of airflow to one growing pathway.

In another aspect, the climate control apparatus may include a returnsystem coupled to the air handler that is configured to return theplurality of streams of airflow from each of the growing pathways to theair handler.

In another aspect, the airflow may be modified after the airflow isreturned from the plurality of growing pathways to have thepredetermined climate conditions before the airflow is re-introducedinto the plurality of growing pathways.

In another aspect, each stream of airflow of the plurality of streams ofairflow is a laminar flow.

In another aspect, the plurality of growing pathways are defined by aplurality of vertical barriers and a plurality of horizontal barriers.

In another aspect, the climate control apparatus is separated from theplurality of growing pathways by an enclosure.

Further areas of applicability will become apparent from the descriptionprovided herein. The description and specific examples in this summaryare intended for purposes of illustration only and are not intended tolimit the scope of the present disclosure.

DRAWINGS

The drawings described herein are for illustrative purposes only ofselected embodiments and not all possible implementations, and are notintended to limit the scope of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of an example indoor growing facility inaccordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing an example method of growing plants inaccordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 3 is a plan view of an example floor layout for an example indoorgrowing facility of the present disclosure.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of a portion of the floor layout of FIG.3 .

FIG. 5 is an isometric view of the example indoor growing facility withthe floor layout of FIG. 3 .

FIG. 6 is an isometric view of the example indoor growing facility ofFIG. 5 shown with portions of the walls and roof as transparent toillustrate the interior components and layout of the facility.

FIG. 7 is an isometric illustration of an example tray used during agermination and/or propagation stages of the growing processes of thepresent disclosure.

FIG. 8 is an isometric illustration of an example float used during agrowing stage of the growing processes of the present disclosure.

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional illustration of a float and bench assemblyused during the growing stage of the growing processes of the presentdisclosure.

FIG. 10 is an illustration of portions of an example indoor growingfacility of the present disclosure.

FIG. 11 is an illustration of further portions of an example indoorgrowing facility of the present disclosure.

FIG. 12 is a side view illustration of an example structure of a growzone of an indoor growing facility of the present disclosure.

FIG. 13 is a top view illustration of one row in a grow zone structureof an indoor growing facility of the present disclosure.

FIG. 14A is a top view of an example grow zone structure showing exampleair handling paths.

FIG. 14B is a side view of the example grow zone structure of FIG. 14Ashowing multiple rows and example air handling paths.

FIG. 14C is a side sectional view along cut plane A-A indicated on FIG.14B.

FIG. 15 is a side view of an example indoor growing facility of thepresent disclosure showing aspects of the grow zone structure,propagation zone structure and air handling paths.

FIG. 16 is an isometric view of an example grow zone structure and airhandling assembly.

FIG. 17A is a schematic illustration showing an example grow room andenvironmental controls in a standard operating mode.

FIG. 17B is a schematic illustration showing the example grow room andenvironmental controls of FIG. 17A in a free cooling mode.

FIG. 18 is a side view of an example grow zone showing aspects of an airhandling system.

FIG. 19 is an end view of example air handling units and air supplyplenums for a grow zone of the present disclosure.

FIG. 20 is an end view of one of the air handling units and air supplyplenums of FIG. 19 .

FIG. 21 is an end view of an entry side of an example air supply plenum.

FIG. 22 is a side sectional view of the air supply plenum of FIG. 21 .

FIG. 23 is an end view of an exit side of the air supply plenum of FIG.21 .

FIG. 24 is an end view an example diverter included in the air supplyplenum of FIGS. 21-23 .

FIG. 25 is a schematic illustration of an environmental controlapparatus operating in a first mode of operation to deliver conditionedair flow to a grow room.

FIG. 26 is a schematic illustration of the environmental controlapparatus of FIG. 25 operating in a second mode of operation to deliverconditioned air flow to the grow room.

FIG. 27 is schematic illustration of an example environmental controlapparatus used to deliver conditioned air flow to a grow room.

FIG. 28 is a cross-sectional illustration showing aspects of the growzone structure including lighting and irrigation elements.

FIG. 29 is an isometric illustration of a float cleaning assembly inaccordance with the present disclosure.

FIG. 30 is a perspective illustration of an example rail system inaccordance with some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 31 is a perspective illustration of an example rail systemsupporting benches containing plants in accordance with some embodimentsof the present disclosure.

FIG. 32 is an illustration of an example powered roller in accordancewith some embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 33 is an illustration of an example walkway positioned adjacent anexample rail system in accordance with some embodiments of the presentdisclosure.

Corresponding reference numerals indicate corresponding parts throughoutthe several views of the drawings.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference tothe accompanying drawings. For purposes of the description hereinafter,it is to be understood that the embodiments described below may assumealternative variations and embodiments. It is also to be understood thatthe specific articles, compositions, and/or processes described hereinare exemplary and should not be considered as limiting. In thedescription, relative terms such as “lower,” “upper,” “horizontal,”“vertical,”, “above,” “below,” “up,” “down,” “top” and “bottom” as wellas derivative thereof (e.g., “horizontally,” “downwardly,” “upwardly,”etc.) should be construed to refer to the orientation as then describedor as shown in the drawing under discussion. These relative terms arefor convenience of description and do not require that the apparatus beconstructed or operated in a particular orientation. Terms concerningattachments, coupling and the like, such as “connected” and“interconnected,” refer to a relationship wherein structures are securedor attached to one another either directly or indirectly throughintervening structures, as well as both movable or rigid attachments orrelationships, unless expressly described otherwise.

Although the terms first, second, third, etc. may be used herein todescribe various elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections,these elements, components, regions, layers and/or sections should notbe limited by these terms. These terms may be only used to distinguishone element, component, region, layer or section from another region,layer or section. Terms such as “first,” “second,” and other numericalterms when used herein do not imply a sequence or order unless clearlyindicated by the context. Thus, a first element, component, region,layer or section discussed below could be termed a second element,component, region, layer or section without departing from the teachingsof the example embodiments.

In the present disclosure the singular forms “a,” “an,” and “the”include the plural reference, and reference to a particular numericalvalue includes at least that particular value, unless the contextclearly indicates otherwise. When values are expressed asapproximations, by use of the antecedent “about,” it will be understoodthat the particular value forms another embodiment. As used herein,“about X” (where X is a numerical value) preferably refers to ±10% ofthe recited value, inclusive. For example, the phrase “about 8”preferably refers to a value of 7.2 to 8.8, inclusive. Where present,all ranges are inclusive and combinable. For example, when a range of “1to 5” is recited, the recited range should be construed as includingranges “1 to 4”, “1 to 3”, “1-2”, “1-2 & 4-5”, “1-3 & 5”, “2-5”, and thelike. In addition, when a list of alternatives is positively provided,such listing can be interpreted to mean that any of the alternatives maybe excluded, e.g., by a negative limitation in the claims. For example,when a range of “1 to 5” is recited, the recited range may be construedas including situations whereby any of 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 are negativelyexcluded; thus, a recitation of “1 to 5” may be construed as “1 and 3-5,but not 2”, or simply “wherein 2 is not included.” It is intended thatany component, element, attribute, or step that is positively recitedherein may be explicitly excluded in the claims, whether suchcomponents, elements, attributes, or steps are listed as alternatives orwhether they are recited in isolation.

The present disclosure is directed to indoor growing facilities, growingapparatuses and related methods. The facilities, apparatuses and methodsof the present disclosure are improvements over existing or traditionalgrowing and farming equipment and processes. As shown in FIG. 1 , anexample indoor growing facility 100 is shown. The growing facility 100can be located on a suitable building site 102. The building site can belocated in various suitable geographic locations and can have varioussizes. The example facility 100 can include a footprint that includes anenclosed building that can include floor space to allow for finishedplant products to be grown to maturity from seeds and packaged fordelivery to a customer. As shown, the facility can include an enclosedstructure 104 with a loading dock 106.

Raw materials such as seeds, growing medium, fertilizers and the likecan be delivered to the loading dock 106. The entire growing process canbe accomplished in the structure 104. When mature plants are grown, theplants can be harvested and packaged for delivery to a customer. Thepackaged plant goods can be delivered from the same loading dock 106 atwhich the raw materials are received. The growing process can becarefully monitored and controlled to allow the plants to be grown tomaturity using less resources than existing or traditional farming andgrowing methods. In addition, the plants can be grown in less time thattraditional farming techniques. Since the plants and their growingconditions are known and recorded from seed to maturity, the quality andcharacteristics of the plants are known and can be traced back to a lotof seed.

The building site 102 may include other features or characteristics. Forexample, the building site 102 may include a reservoir 108. Thereservoir 108 can be used to collect and/or hold rainwater than can beused or incorporated into the growing process after suitable qualitycontrol is performed such as filtration and/or removal of contaminants.

As can be appreciated, the growing facility 100 can be a large facility.The principles and teachings of the present disclosure can be used invarious facilities having various sizes. The various apparatuses,structures and methods described herein can be modified to be located invarious types of growing facilities having various sizes.

Turning now to FIG. 2 , an example growing process 200 is shown. Thegrowing process 200 may be used in the growing facility 100. Aspreviously described, the growing facility 100 is sized and arranged toallow efficient performance of the process 200 from seeding 202 topacking 216. It should be appreciated, however, that some facilities maybe arranged or sized to allow performance of one or more of the steps ofthe process 200.

The process 200 begins at step 202. At step 202, seeding occurs. Atseeding, seeds of a predetermined plant variety are placed in a suitablegrowing medium. In one example, the seeds are placed in a suitableprepackaged growing medium. One such prepackaged growing medium tray isthe Quick Plug. Such a medium provides for the healthy germination andgrowing of the plant variety. Growing medium can also be prepared at thefacility according to a specified recipe(s) and arranged on a tray atspecific spaced distances. The plant medium may be placed in one or moreopenings in a tray that can hold one or more seeds and/or plants. Afterthe plant medium is placed, one or more seeds can be deposited on or inthe medium. There are various known techniques for depositing seeds on amedium or into the medium at a predetermined depth beneath the surface.

The process 200 then moves to step 204. At step 204, germination occurs.At germination, the seeds and growing medium are placed in anenvironment having predetermined germination conditions. Germination canoccur in two to three days for example. For certain plant varieties,germination may take other periods of time. At germination, the seedhusk breaks open and the plant begins to grow. Once the seed husk breaksopen, the process moves to step 206. In the indoor growing facility 100,a germination chamber can be provided in which the seeds are held inpredetermined conditions.

At step 206, propagation occurs. Propagation refers to the early stageof plant development. The plants during this early stage of growing mayneed somewhat different environmental conditions than are requiredduring later growing stages. In one example, the trays of germinatedseeds can be loaded into benches and moved from the germination chamberto a propagation chamber. As will be described, the propagation chambermay be combined with a grow zone in which the plants are grown tomaturity. In other examples, the propagation chamber can be separatefrom the grow zone. Once in the propagation chamber, the plants areallowed to grow until the plants have predetermined characteristics thatmake the plants suitable for growing to maturity. In some examples, thestage of propagation can take about ten to twelve days. In otherexamples and for other plant varieties, the stage of propagation cantake other lengths of time.

At step 208, transplanting occurs. The step of transplanting 208 caninclude a process of moving the plants from a tray into a float. Thisprocess generally includes moving the plants from a dense arrangement ofplants to an arrangement in which the plants are spaced further apartfrom one another. During germination and propagation, the seedlings andplants can be positioned closer together because the plants are smallenough such that they do not interfere with one another or inhibit thegrowth of neighboring plants. Once the plants reach a certain size (atthe conclusion of propagation 206, for example) the plants need to bemoved further apart to allow the plant to grow to reach a suitablemature size. Thus, the propagated plants are transplanted to a growingcontainer that has suitable spacing to allow the plants to reach amature size. In order to transplant the plants, the trays can be removedfrom the propagation chamber. The plants and growing medium can beremoved from the propagation trays and re-inserted or re-deposited intoa float. The float can have suitable spacing for the growing of theplants.

The process 200 can continue to step 210. At step 210, the plants can begrown. The growing step 210 can include the growing of the plants to amature size at which time the mature plants are ready for harvesting.During step 210, the plants can be moved into a grow zone, as will befurther described, in which the environmental conditions can becontrolled and monitored to efficiently grow the plants to a maturesize. The grow zone can have suitable structures and elements to providelighting, air flow, irrigation, nutrients, and the like to be provided.The plants can be moved in their floats and positioned into benches. Thefloat and bench assemblies can then be moved into the grow zone usingautomatic conveyance equipment in some examples. The plants in theirfloats can be transported and moved through the grow zone. In the growzone, the plants can be subjected to various desirable conditions thatmay be desirable according to the particular stage of growing ordevelopment. Once fully mature, the plants can be removed from the growzone. In alternative embodiments, the process can proceed withouttransplanting. In such alternative embodiments, the process movesdirectly from the propagation step 206 to the growing step 210,eliminating the transplanting step 208. A different tray/growing floatdesign may be preferred in such alternative embodiments.

Once the plants have grown to maturity, the process can move to step212. At step 212, harvesting occurs. At harvesting 212, the plants areremoved from the growing medium and/or from the growing floats. Thedesirable parts of the plants are collected for packaging and theundesirable parts can be disposed of, composted or otherwise recycled.In some examples, the plants can be harvested using automatic cutting,shearing, scraping or collecting equipment. While not shown, the growingcontainers, floats, trays, and/or benches can be cleaned and reused togrow new plants using the same process. Some plants or crops, such asberries and fruits, can be placed back into the grow zone for second orsubsequent grow cycles as the same plant can produce multiple harvests.

At step 214, mixing may occur. At mixing, various types of plants can bemixed together. For example, a plant product may include a predeterminedmixture of different plant varieties for a particular salad or greensmix. At step 214, the various mature and harvested plants can be mixedtogether into the predetermined mixes.

At step 216, packaging may occur. The plant products, eitherindividually or in mixtures as previously described, can be combinedinto containers, bags, boxes or other receptacles. Once the plantproducts are packaged, the plant products can be shipped or delivered tocustomers or other plant processing facilities.

As can be appreciated, the process 200 can be continuously andautomatically performed. In some examples, the process 200 iscontinuously performed using the facility 100 so that plants in variousstages of development are moving through the various zones and chambersfrom seeding 202 to packing 216. In this manner, the indoor farmingfacility 100 can continuously produce plant products rather than beinglimited to specific growing seasons or by variations in weather or otherexternal environmental conditions. Furthermore, since the process isperformed indoors, the process can be performed in any geographiclocation and in closer proximity to/within urban areas or in areas thatotherwise would not support farming of many plant varieties.

As shown in FIG. 3 , an example layout of an indoor growing facility 300is shown. The layout can be a plan view of the indoor growing facility100 shown in FIG. 1 . The layout illustrates the footprint of variousrooms, chambers or zones in the indoor growing facility. The verticalfarm 300 will be explained with reference to the growing process 200previously described. It should be appreciated, however, that otherlayouts and other facilities can also be used.

The vertical farm 300 can be enclosed within one or more buildings andcan include an external wall 304 that can be constructed to enclose thevarious zones of the indoor growing facility. The vertical farm 300 mayinclude a seeding zone 306. The seeding zone 306 can be configured as anenclosed room in which the seeding step 202 can be performed. Thegermination zone 308 can be positioned adjacent or proximate to theseeding zone 306. The germination zone 308 can be an enclosed,environmentally controlled room in which the germination step 204 can beperformed.

The vertical farm 300 may also include a propagation loading zone 310.The propagation loading zone 310 may include one or more conveyanceassemblies such as conveyors, racks, rail systems or the like. The traysof plants from the germination zone 308 can be moved into or onto thepropagation loading zone 310. The trays can then be moved from thepropagation loading zone 310 into the propagation zone 312. This processcan be performed automatically using suitable conveyance devices such asrobots, conveyors, pneumatics, and the like. The propagation zone 312can be combined as part of the enclosure that makes up the grow zone318. Thus, the propagation zone 312 can be environmentally controlled tohave predetermined propagation climate conditions such as humidity, airflow, temperature, lighting, irrigation and the like.

The vertical farm 300 may also include a transplanting zone 314. Thetransplanting zone 314 may be located adjacent or proximate to thepropagation loading zone 310. In this manner, the movement of the plantsfrom the propagation zone 312 to the transplanting zone 314 is simpleand does not require excessive movement of the propagated plants. Thestep 208 of transplanting can occur in the transplanting zone 314. Theplants can be transplanted from a tray to a float in the transplantingzone 314. The transplanting zone 314 may include an automatictransplanting apparatus that can remove plants from the propagationtrays and deposit the plants in the growing floats. An examplepropagation tray 700 and an example growing float 800 are shown in FIG.7 and FIG. 8 , respectively. The growing tray can have increased spacingand/or a decreased density of plants.

As stated above, in alternative embodiments, the vertical farm 300 canbe designed without a transplanting zone 314 or transplanting equipment.In such embodiments, plants can move directly from the propagation zone312 to the growing zone 318.

The vertical farm 300 can also include a growing loading zone 316. Thegrowing loading zone is a region of the layout of the growing facilityin which the floats of plants can be inserted or loaded into the growzone 318. The growing loading zone 316 can include conveyors, racks,rail systems, ramps, robots, automated moving systems, or otherconveyance devices to move the floats into the grow zone 318. Theloading equipment can be automatically controlled to deliver floatsand/or plants into the grow zone in a predetermined manner so that theplants are positioned in a desired number and/or sequence in the growzone 318. The floats that include the propagated plants may be installedor inserted into benches that can hold multiple floats. The benches canalso be conveyed moved or otherwise loaded in the growing loading zone316 into the grow zone 318. The growing loading zone 316 can bepositioned adjacent to the transplanting zone 314 and adjacent to thegrow zone 318.

The grow zone 318 can be positioned to accept the plants that may bepositioned in the floats and/or benches. The grow zone 318 is a largeenclosure that allows the growing plants to be subjected toenvironmentally controlled conditions. The controlled environment canimprove the growth rate and health of the plants. The controlled climateconditions can also use less resources than traditional farming methods.The grow zone 318 can include a growing structure that includes variouselements, as will be described further below, to create separate growingpathways or chambers within the grow zone 318 that can further optimizeand improve the environmental characteristics or specified climateconditions such as light, humidity, air flow, temperature, irrigationand the like. The grow zone 318 can be constructed of steel and wrappedin insulated panels to maintain the climate within the grow chamber. Theinsulating panels may be 4-inch insulated panels in one example.

The plants in the floats that are loaded into the grow zone 318 may movewithin the grow zone 318 as they mature. In the example shown, theplants may move toward the growing unloading zone 320 as they mature.After the plants are fully matured, the plants can be automaticallyunloaded from the grow zone 318. The growing unloading zone 320 caninclude conveyors, racks, rail systems, elevators, robots, and the likethat can unload the floats and/or benches of plants from the grow zone318.

The unloaded plants can move from the growing unloading zone 320 to theharvesting zone 322. The harvesting step 212 of the process 200previously described can be performed in the harvesting zone 322. Forexample, the plants can be removed from the floats and the desirableportions of the plants that are used to produce plant products can becut, trimmed, scraped or otherwise separated from the undesirableportion. The desirable portions of the plants are then collected, whilethe undesirable parts of the plants and/or the growing medium can bedeposed of, composted, or otherwise recycled. The harvesting zone 322may include, for example, a float scraping assembly that can be used toremove the plants from the floats.

The vertical farm 300 may also include a work-in-process zone 332. Thework-in-process zone 332 can be used for various tasks involving thecollected plant material after harvesting. The work-in-process zone 332can be used, for example, to perform the mixing step 214 previouslydescribed. In other examples, the work-in-process zone 332 can be usedto perform other tasks. The vertical farm 300 may also include a productcooling area, which can be an active cooling area for cooling theharvested crops prior to packaging. The active cooling area may employ avacuum cooling process.

The vertical farm may also include the packing zone 334. The packingzone 334 may include various workstations and/or packing equipment thatcan be used to perform the packing step 216. In various examples, thepacking zone 334 can include equipment for mixing, weighing, sorting,detecting product characteristics, bagging, boxing, sealing, cooling ormaking atmospheric modification as may be desired to package, preserveand prepare the plant products for shipment to customers or otherprocessors.

The vertical farm 300 may include other systems or equipment that mayserve or provide inputs to the other zones in the vertical farm 300. Asfurther shown, the vertical farm 300 may include an air handler zone324. The air handler zone 324 is positioned along one side of the growzone 318 and may include one or more air handling units or otherequipment that provides air flow to the grow zone. The air handler zone324 may be positioned inside the outer structure of the vertical farm300 or outside the grow zone 318.

The vertical farm 300 may also include one or more irrigation systems toprovide water having predetermined characteristics to the various zones.The vertical farm 300 may include a first irrigation system 326 and asecond irrigation system 328 that can serve one or more portions of thegrow zone 318. The first irrigation system 326 and the second irrigationsystem 328 can include filtration systems, sanitation systems, nutrientadditive systems, other purification systems, and recycling systems toprovide water to the plants in the grow zone 318. The vertical farm 300may also include a propagation irrigation system 330 that can includesimilar systems to that of the first irrigation system 326 and thesecond irrigation system 328 but can operate to deliver water and/ornutrients to the propagation zone 312. The vertical farm 300 may alsoinclude a fresh water system 340 that can operate to process, filterand/or purify fresh water that may need to be added into the closedirrigation systems, such as first irrigation system 326, secondirrigation system 328 and/or propagation system 330.

As further shown, the vertical farm 300 may also include washing zone342. The washing zone 342 may include various pieces of equipment thatcan be used to wash the various pieces of equipment used in the growingprocess. Such elements that may need washing include the trays, floatsor benches used during propagation or growing or other growingequipment, and removable components of the harvesting equipment.

Referring now to FIG. 5 , an illustration of the indoor growing facility500 is shown. The example shown may have a similar layout the verticalfarm 300 shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 . In the figure, a portion of the roofof the facility 500 is removed to illustrate the location of the growzone 318 inside the outer building 502. The grow zone 318 comprises agrowing shell or growing module 504, which is located within andenclosed by outer building 502. The climate control systems andequipment of vertical farm 300 can be located inside a protectedenvironment within outer building 502, but outside the grow zone 318. Inother methods and farming structures, the environmental controlequipment is often located inside the grow zone. Locating the climatecontrol equipment within the grow zone can make the environmentalconditions of the grow zone more difficult to control and can introducecontaminants into the grow zone. The shell-inside-a-shell arrangement ofthe present disclosure is an improvement over traditional farming and/orgrowing arrangements.

Referring now to FIG. 6 , an illustration of the growing facility 500 ofFIG. 5 is shown with portions of the wall and roof as transparent toillustrate the interior components and layout of the farming facility.As can be seen, the grow zone 318 occupies the largest portion of thefacility 500 and is located within a larger enclosed structure 502. Itis understood however, that the facility could have multiple grow zonemodules within the enclosed structure 502 and that the grow zone 318does not need to occupy the largest footprint in the facility. Theclimate control equipment, and other systems that communicate with thegrow zone 318 are located within the enclosed structure 502.

Turning now to FIG. 7 , an example propagation tray 700 is shown. Thetray 700 can include multiple openings 702 arranged with a predeterminedspacing d1 in a longitudinal direction along the tray 700. The openings702 can also be spaced apart at a distance d2 in a transverse directionacross the tray 700. The openings 702 are used to retain the growingmedium for the plant. Any suitable distances d1 and d2 can be used.Since the tray 700 is used during seeding, germination, and propagation,the distances d1 and d2 can be relatively small since the plants 704that are growing during these stages of development are small. In someexamples, the openings 702 can be spaced apart such that distances d1and d2 are only a few millimeters. In other examples, the opening arespaced having distances d1 and d2 in a range of about 1 to 2 inches. Inother examples, other spacing can be used. The tray 700 can be formed ofany suitable material such as a suitable polymer, composite or otherplastic. In other examples, other materials can be used.

FIG. 8 shows an example float 800 that can be used to retain the plants704 during the growing stage of development after propagation. Theplants 704 can be retained in the floats 800 until the plants 704 reachmaturity and are harvested. As can be seen, the plants 704 are arrangedin openings 802 in the floats 800 in less dense arrangement than that inthe trays 700. Plants, including the growing media and root system, canbe transplanted from tray 700 into the openings 802 of floats 800.Accordingly, openings 802 should be sized to receive the plants,including the growing media and root system removed from tray 700 afterthe propagation stage.

The plants 704 become much larger during the growing stage ofdevelopment and thus must be positioned further apart from each to alloweach plant 704 to grow to a mature size. The openings 802 can bearranged on the float 800 having a distance d3 from each other along thelongitudinal direction and having a distance d4 from each along thetransverse direction across the float 800. The distances d3 and d4 canbe any suitable distance. In some examples the distances d3 and d4 arein a range of about 1 inch to 3 inches. In some examples, the distancesd3 and d4 are in a range of about 8 inches to 16 inches. In otherexamples, other spacing or distances can be used.

FIGS. 7 and 8 illustrate one example of a tray and float system thatincludes a transplantation process, but other arrangement of trays andfloats can be used in the facility. For example, the shape of theopenings can be varied to accommodate different growing media or rootsystems. The location and arrangement of the openings can be varied. Thethickness or height of the float can be varied to a desiredspecification in relation to the growth characteristics of the plant andits root system. The number of openings can be varied. Also, the floatcan be designed with features such as spacers that are used to positionthe float in a desired position above the base of the bench.

In other examples, a single tray or float can be used for the entiregrowth cycle of the plant from seeding to harvest. Such a float designwould not require transplanting after propagation. Such a float shouldhave a design to receive the growing media in a manner that accommodatesthe plant growth throughout its growth cycle until harvest.

FIG. 9 shows an example bench assembly 900 that includes a float 800retained in a bench 902. After the plants 704 exit propagation, theplants 704 are transplanted from the tray 700 into the floats 800.During such transplanting, the plants 704 and the growing medium 904 areremoved from the trays 700 and are re-inserted into the openings 802 ofthe float 800. The openings 702 of the trays 700 and the opening 802 ofthe floats 800 can have the same outer size or outer diameter. In thismanner, the plants 704 and the growing medium 904 can be re-insertedinto the floats 800 in the less dense arrangement as previouslydescribed.

As further shown, the float 800 can be inserted into a bench 902. Thebench may be a rectangular box that can be sized so that one or morefloats 800 fit inside the internal volume defined by the walls of thebench 902. The float 800 may be positioned so that a lower surface 912of the float 800 is positioned above a base 914 of the bench 902. Thisarrangement defines a cavity 908 between the lower surface 912 and thebase 914. To create cavity 908, the float 800 can be designed to includelegs, spacers, or other features to position the lower surface 912 ofthe float 800 above the base 914 of the bench. In other examples, one ormore protrusions, supports, ledges, or other surface can be added to thewalls of the bench 902 to position the lower surface 912 of the float800 spaced apart from the base 914 of the bench 902. The roots 906 ofthe plants 704 can extend from the float 800 into the cavity 908. Inthis arrangement, the roots 906 can grow to a suitable size to support amature plant despite the growing medium 904 being relatively small for amature plant. This arrangement can further support an ebb and floodmethod of irrigating the plants 704.

In such an ebb and flood method of irrigation, water is deposited intothe bench 902. The water fills the bench 902 including the cavity 908.The bench 902 also includes a drain 910 positioned in the base 914. Thewater drains from the cavity 908 through the drain 910. The drain 910can be suitably sized so that the water drains from the cavity 908 in apredetermined amount of time. The amount of time can be in a range ofabout 3 minutes to about 10 minutes. In another example, thepredetermined amount of time to drain is about 5 minutes. The water thatis deposited into the bench 902 to fill the cavity 908 can containdesirable nutrients and other additives that provide the necessarynutrition to the plants 704 for proper development and growth. The roots906 can absorb or otherwise retain moisture and nutrients from the waterto support growth and development of the plants 704.

Referring now to FIG. 10 , an illustration of portions of a growingfacility 1000 are shown. In this example, a germination zone 308 such asa germination room is positioned adjacent to the propagation loadingzone 310. The propagation loading zone 310 can include one or more racks(not shown) that include wheels or rollers to allow the trays 700 toeasily moved from the germination room and inserted into the propagationzone 312. As further shown, the transplanting zone 314 can include atransplanting apparatus 1002 that can automatically transfer the plants704 from the trays 700 to the floats 800. The floats can then bepositioned inside the benches 902 and moved into the grow zone 318 inthe growing loading zone 316. The benches can be placed near the growingloading zone 316 by an automated overhead crane 1004 after washing andthen loaded with floats 800. The floats and benches can be moved, forexample, along the rail system into the growing loading zone 316. Inother examples, the crane 1004 can also be used in the growing unloadingzone 320 to move the floats 800 and/or benches 902 in the growingunloading zone 320.

As shown in FIG. 30 , the growing facility can include rail system 3000that is used to transport, convey or otherwise move the plants in theindoor growing facility 1100. The rail system 3000 can be used in thevarious zones previously described. The rail system 3000 can be used,for example, in the propagation loading zone 310, the propagation zone312, the transplanting zone 314, the growing loading zone 316, the growzone 318, the growing unloading zone 320 and the harvesting zone 322.The rail system 3000 can include two elongated rail members 3002 thatcan extend along a longitudinal direction of the rail system 3000. Therail members 3002 are spaced apart at a suitable lateral width so that atray, float, or bench can be supported between or on the rail members3002. The rail members 3002 can be secured at the desired lateral widthby one or more lateral members 3008. The rail members 3002 and thelateral members can be made of a suitable aluminum, steel or other alloyand can have a square, rectangular, round or other cross-sectional shapeto provide suitable rigidity and strength to support the trays, floatand/or benches that contain the plants at various stages of development.

The rail system 3000 may also include one or more wheels 3004 that canbe periodically positioned on the rail members 3002. The wheels 3004 canallow the trays, floats and/or benches to be easily moved along thelength of the rail system 3000. In other examples, the rail system 3000can include rollers that are positioned between the rail members 3002 toprovide similar functionality. In still other examples, the trays,floats and/or benches can include wheels or rollers that are configuredto roll on the rail members 3002. In still other examples, both the railmembers 3002 and the trays, floats, and/or benches include wheels orrollers.

As shown in FIG. 31 , a rail system 3100 may be similarly configured tothe rail system 3000 previously described. The rail system 3100 isconfigured to support a bench 3102 that includes plants 3104. As can beappreciated, a width of the bench 3102 can be configured to be similarin size to the lateral width of the rail system 3100.

An example of an automated conveyance system is shown in FIG. 32 , wherea powered roller 3204 and motor assembly is illustrated. The poweredroller 3204 can be positioned on one or both of the rail members 3002.In the example shown, the powered roller 3204 is connected to railmember 3202. The powered roller 3204 is coupled to a motor 3210 that canbe a suitable servo-motor, stepper motor, electric motor or the like.The motor 3210 can turn the powered roller 3204. When a tray, float,and/or bench is positioned on the rail system, it rests on or contactsthe powered roller 3204. Thus, when the motor 3210 rotates the poweredroller 3204, the tray, float and/or bench is moved along the rail systemin a direction of the rail member 3202. The rail system may also includeone or more wheels 3206. The wheels 3206 can be free-spinning andprovided to support the tray, float, and/or bench. With thisconfiguration, a powered roller 3204 is only need at predeterminedpositions along the rail member 3202. In one example, a powered roller3204 can be provided so that only one powered roller 3204 contacts aparticular tray, float or bench at one time.

The motor 3210 can be coupled to controller or other computing devicethat can control the powered roller 3204 and cause movement of thetrays, floats, and/or benches at desired times and/or at predeterminedschedules or events. Accordingly, the movement of the benches can beautomated and controlled remotely.

FIG. 11 illustrates another view of the indoor growing facility 1100from a different angle from that shown in FIG. 10 . In this view, thegrowing unloading zone 320 is shown to include one or more rail systemswith rollers that can be used to move the floats 800 and/or the benches902. In the background, the growing loading zone 316 and the propagationloading zone 310 can be seen. As further shown, a harvesting apparatus1104 can be positioned in the harvesting zone 322. The grow zone moduleor structure 318 can be enclosed in the building 1106. The grow zone318, which can be a modularized structure can be separated from theexterior walls of the building 1106. As will be further described, thespace 1102 shown can include the air handling equipment and otherclimate control elements that can provide air flow to the grow zone 318with predetermined characteristics to achieve a desired climate withinthe grow zone.

As previously described, each grow zone module 318 can include aninternal design that separates the grow zone module 318 into one or moregrowing pathways. FIG. 12 illustrates an example arrangement of thegrowing structure inside a grow zone module 318. While the exactarrangement such as the number of rows or pathways may vary, therelative arrangement of the grow zone module, the propagation zone andother aspects as hereinafter described provide improved performance andgrowing conditions over that of other growing structures. The grow zonemodule 318 can be a modularized structure that can be sized to thespecific needs of the indoor growing facility. Moreover, in someexamples, it is preferred to have multiple grow zone modules 318 in asingle indoor growing facility. Grow zone modules 318 can vary in size,footprint, number of layers and number of rows within each layer.

FIG. 12 illustrates a plan view of an example growing structure 1200 ofa grow zone module 318. In the example shown, the growing structure 1200may include one or more growing rows 1202. Any number of rows 1202 a,1202 b, to 1202 n may be used. In this example, the growing structure1200 includes ten growing rows 1202. The rows 1202 can be similarlysized and can be sized so that the width of the row (i.e., measured upand down as shown in FIG. 12 ) allows one float 800 or one benchassembly 900 to be positioned in a row. Multiple bench assemblies 902can then be inserted into each row and abut one another along thelongitudinal direction of the row 1202.

Such an arrangement is shown in FIG. 13 . As shown, a single row 1202includes ten bench assemblies 902 positioned side by side in the row. Inother examples, the row 1202 can be sized to allow for more than tenbench assemblies or to support less than ten assemblies.

Referring back to FIG. 12 , the growing structure 1200 also includes aloading transportation lane 1204 and an unloading transportation lane1206. The loading transportation lane is an area of the growingstructure 1200 that allows bench assemblies 902 that are loaded into thegrow zone 318 to be positioned in a row as may be desired according to apredetermined growing schedule. For example, each row 1202 may include adifferent plant variety or may be on a different growing schedule thanan adjacent row or pathway. As such, a newly propagated and transplantedbench assembly 902 of plants 704 may need to be inserted into thegrowing structure 1200 in a desired row. The loading transportation lane1204 allows the bench assembly to be moved to the desired row using aloading elevator 1208 and other conveyance equipment such as rollers,conveyors, robots or the like. In one example, the bench assembly 902can be pushed into a desired row 1202 by a pusher 1302 (FIG. 13 ). Thepusher 1302 can be a pneumatic, electrical, hydraulic or mechanicallyoperated bar or other bumper than extend toward the first position inthe row 1202 to move the bench assembly 902 from the loadingtransportation lane 1204 and into the first position. As the benchassembly 902 is pushed or otherwise moved into the first position, thebench assemblies 902 push against one another to advance the benchassemblies along the row 1202 toward the unloading transportation lane1206. Thus, as one bench assembly is moved into the first position, thebench assembly 902 previously in the tenth position is pushed into theunloading transportation lane 1206.

The unloading transportation lane 1206 operates similarly to the loadingtransportation lane 1204 and allows bench assemblies 902 that includematured plants ready for harvesting to be unloaded from the grow zone.When the bench assembly 902 is pushed out of the row 1202 from the tenthposition, the bench assembly 902 can be moved using conveyanceequipment, such as that previously described, that may include unloadingelevator 1210 to move the bench assembly out of the grow zone 318 usingthe unloading transportation lane 1206.

As further shown in FIGS. 12 and 13 , the growing structure 1200 mayalso include a plenum wall 1212 and a return wall 1214. The plenum wall1212 can be positioned at a first side of the growing structure 1200 ata first end of the rows 1202. The return wall 1214 can be positioned atan opposite end of the growing structure 1202 than the plenum wall 1212.The plenum wall 1212 can operate to supply an air flow havingpredetermined characteristics to the grow zone 318. As will be furtherdescribed, the plenum wall 1212 can be fluidly connected to one or moreair handling units that supply a volume of air that is separated andsupplied to each pathway in the growing structure. The return wall 1214is positioned and configured to collect air flowing in the growingstructure 1200 can return the air to the air handling units where it isre-conditioned and then re-supplied to the grow zone.

As further shown in this example, the propagation zone 312 can bepositioned in the growing structure 1200 and can be combined within thegrow zone module. The propagation zone 312 can be positioned at an outerside of the growing structure and can be positioned between the loadingtransportation lane 1204 and the return wall 1214. In this position, theplants in the propagation zone are subjected to desirable environmentalconditions that are supplied by the environmental controls of the growzone 318. Thus, separate environmental controls or a separatepropagation chamber are not required.

The propagation zone 312 can operate, in one example, as a push system.In such an example, the trays 700 of plants 704 are pushed into thepropagation zone 312 at the propagation loading zone 310. When one trayor bench is pushed into the propagation zone 312, one tray or bench ispushed out of the propagation zone 312. In such a manner, the propagatedplants are pushed through the propagation zone 312. In other examples,other methods of automated or manual loading and unloading can be used.

Turning now to FIGS. 14A-C, another example growing structure 1400 isshown. In this example, the growing structure 1400 is configured to haveten rows 1402 (see FIG. 14B) and two columns 1404 (see FIG. 14C). Theconfiguration of the growing structure 1400 can define twenty growingpathways 1406. The growing structure 1400 can be used as a grow zone 318or multiple such growing structures 1400 can be positioned next to eachother to define a larger grow zone module 318. In another example, fiveof the structures 1400 shown can be positioned side-by-side to define agrow zone 318 that includes one hundred grow pathways 1406. In otherexamples, other size grow zones 318 can be used. In other examples, thegrow zone 318 can be one large zone partitioned into ten columns 1404and ten rows 1402 to create one hundred grow pathways. It is understoodthat the grow zone module can vary in size and can include more than onehundred grow pathways 1406 or can include less than one hundred growpathways 1406.

As further shown, the grow structure can include a loadingtransportation lane 1408 and an unloading transportation lane 1410. Theloading transportation lane 1408 and the unloading transportation lane1410 can be configured as previously described and can be used to loadand unload the float and/or benches into or from the growing structure1400, respectively.

As further shown, the propagation zone 312 may be positioned in thegrowing structure 1400. The propagation zone 312 can be positioned at anend of the growing structure 1400 and can be positioned adjacent theloading transportation lane 1408.

The growing structure 1400 can be made of any suitable support structurethat can support the weight of the floats and/or benches that will besuspended and positioned in the pathways 1406. In one example, thesupport structure of the growing structure 1400 is made of steel rackingthat include support columns and beams arranged perpendicularly to eachother to form the rows 1402 and the columns 1404 that, in turn, definethe pathways 1406. In other examples, the growing structure 1400 can beconstructed of other suitable materials.

As shown in FIG. 33 , the growing structure 1400 may include one or morewalkways 3304 that can be positioned periodically in the growingstructure 1400. The walkways 3304 can provide access to various areas inthe growing structure for observation, repair, maintenance and the like.In the example shown, one row of the growing structure 1400 is shown andthe row may include a rail system 3302 (such as the rail systemspreviously described) that can support multiple trays, floats, and/orbenches of plants. Adjacent to the rail system 3302, a walkway 3304 canbe provided with suitable size to allow an operator to walk on thewalkway 3304 to access the rail system 3302 and other rail systems (notshown) that may be positioned adjacent to the rail system 3302. A safetyrail 3306 can be provided proximate to the walkway 3304 to allow theoperator to grasp and to provide safety. The walkways 3304 can bepositioned at any suitable interval in the growing structure 1400 toprovide access to the plants growing in the grow zone. In one example, awalkway 3304 is provided at every other row around a perimeter of thegrowing structure. Walkways 3304 can also be provided between columns toprovide access to interior rows of plants in the grow zone.

It has been observed that the plants growing in the growing structure1400 demonstrate improved development when the climate conditions aremaintained at predetermined levels or within certain ranges in eachgrowing pathway 1406. The predetermined levels of climate conditions mayvary between plant varieties. It has also been observed that it can bedifficult to maintain the predetermined climate conditions in thegrowing pathways unless the space of the growing pathways issufficiently isolated. In some examples, barriers can be located betweenthe growing pathways 1406 to improve the control of the climateconditions therein. For example, when vertical barriers are notpositioned between the columns 1404 and when horizontal barriers are notpositioned between the rows 1402, the environmental conditions canfluctuate undesirably. Without barriers, the air flow between thepathways 1406 can mix and convection effects can cause hotter air torise and cooler air to fall within the growing structure 1400.

To reduce the undesirable effects previously described, verticalbarriers and horizontal barriers can be positioned in between the rows1402 and the columns 1404 to define the individual, separated pathways1406. In one example, vertical wall barriers can be constructed betweenthe columns 1406. In another example, vertical sheets of material suchas tarps of a suitable plastic, vinyl, canvas or the like can be hungbetween the columns 1406 and secured to the rail systems that form thegrowing structure 1400. Horizontal sheeting (or other barriers) can bepositioned on the rail systems to form barriers between the verticallystacked rows 1402. In other examples, insulated panels can be used. Inother examples, the floats or benches that hold the plants in thegrowing structure 1400 form suitable horizontal barriers to restrict theintermixing of air flow between the rows 1402. In such examples, traysor other horizontal barrier members can be positioned in the loadingtransportation lane 1408 and/or in the unloading transportation lane1410 to separate the rows 1402 in the transportation lanes that wouldotherwise not include the floats or benches of plants.

To further improve the stability of the climate conditions within thegrow zone and in each pathway 1406, a method of delivering laminar flowof air throughout the grow zone is needed. An improved method ofdelivering a laminar airflow is described herein. In one example, thegrowing structure 1400 can include a plenum wall. The plenum wall 1420can include a structure of ducts that can separate and guide air flow toeach of the pathways 1406. As shown, the plenum wall 1420 can be fluidlyconnected to one or more air handling units 1424. The air handling units1424 can supply a volume of conditioned air to the plenum wall 1420. Theplenum wall 1420 can separate and guide a supply of air to each of thepathways 1406 to produce a laminar air flow in each of the pathways1406. The laminar air flow may also have other predetermined climateparameters such as humidity, temperature and/or air flow rate.

The air flow can exit the air plenum wall 1420 and travel through eachof the pathways 1406 in the growing structure. The return wall 1422 ispositioned at an opposite end of the growing structure 1400 and servesto collect and return the air from the growing structure 1400 to the airhandling units. The return wall 1422 can be fluidly connected to one ormore air return ducts 1426. The return ducts 1426 are also fluidlyconnected to the air handling units 1424. The air flow can bere-conditioned and then re-supplied to the growing structure 1400 viathe plenum wall 1420. In the example shown, the growing structure 1400includes two return ducts 1426 positioned on or above a top surface ofthe growing structure 1400. In other examples, other quantities ofreturn ducts 1426 can be used and the return ducts 1426 can be routed inother manners to the air handling units 1424.

As can be seen, the air flow in the growing chamber moves in thedirection of the arrows from the air plenum wall 1420 to the return wall1422. The plants that are positioned in the floats are loaded into thegrowing structure at the loading transportation lane 1408 and movethrough the growing structure 1400 in a direction opposite to the airflow direction. In this manner, the most mature plants are subjected toconditioned air that is closest to the plenum wall 1420. The most matureplants can be subjected to air flow that has the predeterminedcharacteristics or climate parameters. As can be appreciated, the airflow may change as the air moves over the plants as it travels from theair plenum wall 1420 to the return wall 1422. The air may be heatedand/or increase in humidity as it travels past the plants in the growingstructure 1400. This is an advantageous arrangement because the moremature plants transpire more than the younger plants and prefer coolermore conditioned air. Younger plants transpire less and thus do notrequire air that is as conditioned as that flowing over mature plants.Accordingly, as shown, dehumidified, cooled air is delivered into thegrow zone adjacent the mature plants and as it passes over the matureplants, the air flow increases in humidity and warms as it moves towardthe younger plants located closer to the loading transportation lane1408. Thus, the laminar airflow within each pathway improves the climatewithin the pathway.

As shown in FIG. 15 , the growing structure 1400 may be positionedinside a structure 1502. Thus, the growing facility 1500 includes afully enclosed growing structure 1400 that is enclosed in an outerstructure 1502. Such a configuration allows the climate control systemsor environmental control elements, such as air handling units 1424 andreturn ducts 1426 to be positioned inside an environmentally controlledchamber while also being positioned outside the grow zone 318. Thus, theoperation of the air handling units 1424, the return ducts 1426 andother environmental control elements do not negatively affect theability to maintain stable conditions in the grow zone 318 while alsopreserving the stable operation of the climate control systems.

As shown in FIG. 16 , another example growing module 1600 is shown.While sized differently from the growing structure 1400 previouslydescribed, the growing module 1600 includes many similar elements and isconfigured in a similar arrangement. In this example, the growing module1600 can be fully enclosed in an outer building structure 1502. Thewalls of the outer building structure 1502 are not shown forillustration purposes. The growing module 1600 can include a growracking system 1602 that can define various rows and columns in thegrowing module 1600. The grow racking system 1602 can include horizontalbarriers to separate the rows in the racking system 1602 and can alsoinclude vertical barriers (not shown) to define a multitude of climateisolated grow pathways.

The growing structure 1600, in this example, also includes four airhandling units 1606 that are positioned at one end of the growing module1600. The air handling units 1606 are fluidly connected to the plenumwall 1608 that operates to separate and deliver air flow to each of thepathways or rows of the growing module 1600. The return wall 1610 may bepositioned at an opposite end of the growing module 1600 and can operateto return the air that has travelled within the growing module 1600 tothe air handling units 1606 via the return ducts 1612. As also shown,the growing structure 1600 can include a transportation lane 1604 thatis a space or structural system adjacent or coupled to the grow rackingsystem 1602 that allows plants or trays carrying floats of plants to bemoved within the grow module 1600.

FIGS. 17A and 17B illustrate growing facilities that can operate indifferent modes of operation in order to condition the air that entersthe grow zone to have predetermined climate conditions orcharacteristics such as air temperature, dew point, humidity and thelike. As shown, the growing facility 1700 can include a grow zone 318 aspreviously described. The grow zone 318 can be positioned inside astructure 1708. The air handling units 1702 and a heat pump system 1704can also be positioned inside the structure 1708 but outside the growzone 318. The air handling units 1702 can be coupled to the grow zone318 to supply air flow to the grow zone 318.

As further shown, the air handling units 1702 can be coupled to the heatpump system 1704. The heat pump system can operate via suitable heatexchange devices and heat exchange fluids to move heat from inside thestructure 1708 to outside the structure 1708 and vice versa. The heatpump system 1704 may include a dry cooler 1706 that is positionedoutside the structure 1708 in an ambient external environment. The drycooler 1706 can be coupled to the heat pump system 1704 with suitableconduits through which water or other suitable heat exchange fluid(e.g., refrigerant) can flow to transfer heat from inside the structure1708 to the ambient environment outside the structure 1708.

As shown in FIG. 17A, a standard operating mode is shown. In thestandard operating mode, the air that flows through the grow zone 318accumulates moisture and raises the temperature and humidity of the airwhen it is returned to the air handling unit 1702. The air must bedehumidified and then cooled so that it can absorb moisture when it isre-supplied to the grow zone 318. To achieve this result, the heat pumpsystem 1704 can use water (or other heat exchange fluid) that is cooledby the dry coolers to remove heat and moisture from the returned airflow via a suitable heat exchanger in the heat pump system 1704. Theheat that is removed from the air and exchanged with the water (or otherheat exchange fluid) can be rejected to the ambient environment via thedry cooler 1706.

As shown in FIG. 17B, the growing facility 1700 can also operate in afree cooling mode of operation. The free cooling mode of operation maybe available in geographic locations in which the growing facility islocated that have outside ambient conditions that are less than about15° C. When such external ambient conditions are present, one or more ofthe heat pumps can be switched off and the dry cooler can use theexternal decreased temperatures to cool the water (or other heatexchange fluid). Such cooled water (or other heat exchange fluid) can beused to cool the air that is returned from the grow zone 318. The freecooling mode of operation allows certain elements of the heat pumpsystem (such as a condenser) to be switched off. The free cooling modeof operation allows the air to be conditioned to have the desiredclimate conditions with a reduced energy requirement. This makes thegrowing facility able to be operated more efficiently and at less costthan traditional of existing facilities.

Referring now to FIG. 18 , an example grow zone 318 is shown. Aventilation or air supply network 1800 is shown. The ventilation network1800 can operate to deliver an airflow to the grow zone 318. Aspreviously described, it is desirable to maintain a laminar airflow inthe grow zone 318. It can be further desirable to maintain an airflowwith an airspeed and volumetric flow rate that is consistent and stableacross certain grow pathways in the grow zone 318. To assist inachieving this result, the ventilation network 1800 can include one ormore air handling units 1802 that are positioned outside the grow zone318 but are fluidly connected to a plenum wall 1810 that is in fluidcommunication with the grow zone 318 to distribute the airflow. The airhandling units 1802 can be connected to the plenum wall 1810 via one ormore air distribution paths that can separate and distribute the air ina stable manner, such as a laminar stream of air, to each of the outletsof the plenum wall 1810.

The ventilation network 1800 can also include a return wall 1806positioned at an opposite end of the grow zone 318 from the plenum wall1810. The return wall 1806 can collect the air from the grow zone 318and return the air to the air handling units 1802 via the return ducts1808.

Turning now to FIGS. 19 and 20 , an improved air distribution system isillustrated. The air distribution system includes an array of airhandling units 1802. The array can include any suitable number of airdistribution assemblies 1900. In this example, four air distributionassemblies 1900 are arranged in the array as shown. In other examples,other numbers of air distribution assemblies 1900 can be used as may beneeded depending on the size of the grow zone 318. Each air distributionassembly 1900 may include an air handling unit 1802 coupled to a firstdistribution channel 1902 and a second distribution channel 1904. In theexample shown, the first distribution channel 1902 and the seconddistribution channel are positioned vertically and operate to guide airin an upward and downward direction as shown. In other examples, thefirst separation of the air flow from the air handling unit 1802 can bein a horizontal or other direction.

As can be seen, the first distribution channel 1902 and the seconddistribution channel 1904 separate the airflow from the air handlingunit 1802 in two substantially equal stream of airflow. Each airdistribution assembly 1900 can then further separate and divide the airflow from each of the first and second distribution channels 1904 and1905, into two distribution sub-assemblies 1906, 1908, 1910, and 1912,having substantially equal streams of airflow. Each of the distributionsub-assemblies 1906, 1908, 1910, and 1912 can be further separate theair flow into sub-assemblies 1914, 1916, 1918, 1920, 1922, 1924, 1926,and 1928. Accordingly, the laminar airflow coming out of air handlingunit 1802 can be subdivided into 8 equal streams of laminar airflow.

As shown in FIG. 20 , an enlarged illustration of the air distributionassembly 1900 is shown. As can be appreciated, each of the airdistribution assemblies 1900 in the array of assemblies can include theelements as described below. Only one assembly 1900 is shown anddescribed in detail for the sake of brevity.

The air distribution assembly 1900 can further divide and separate theair flow downstream of the first distribution channel 1902 and thesecond distribution channel 1904. In the example shown, the assembly1900 further includes a third channel 1906, a fourth channel 1908, afifth channel 1910 and a sixth channel 1912. The third channel 1906 caninclude a first manifold 1914 and a second manifold 1916. The fourthchannel 1908 can include a third manifold 1918 and a fourth manifold1920. The fifth channel 1910 can include a fifth manifold 1922 and asixth manifold 1926. The sixth channel 1912 can include a seventhmanifold 1924 and an eighth manifold 1928. Thus, the air from the airhandler can be separated and divided to result in eight manifolds 1914,1916, 1918, 1920, 1922, 1924, 1926 and 1928.

Each of the manifolds can have the same structure to further divide andseparate the air flow to be guided into each of the grow pathways in thegrow zone 318. Each of the manifolds can have the structure shown inFIGS. 21-24 and further explained below. For the sake of brevity, thefirst manifold 1914 is described. It should be appreciated, however,that each of the other manifolds, namely the second manifold 1916, thethird manifold 1918, the fourth manifold 1920, the fifth manifold 1922,the sixth manifold 1926, the seventh manifold 1924, and the eighthmanifold 1928 can include the same or a similar structure.

Each of the manifolds can be connected to or form part of the plenumwall 1810 previously described. In some examples, the various manifolds(i.e., the eight manifolds) can be positioned adjacent to and/orabutting one another to form the plenum wall 1810. In other examples,other quantities of manifolds can be used to create a plenum wall sizedaccording to the size of the grow zone module.

The manifold 1914 can be rectangular shaped element that can include anupstream side 2104 and a downstream side 2208. The upstream side 2104can be coupled to the channel 1906 to accept air from the air handlingunit 1802 and to further separate and divide the air flow. The upstreamside 2104 can include an opening 2102 that can be coupled to the channel1906. In some examples, the manifold 1914 and the channel 1906 can bemade from galvanized sheet metal and formed into the desired shape. Theopening 2102 can be coupled to the channel 1906 using suitableconnections known in the art. In other examples, the manifold 1914 andthe channel 1906 can be made of other materials such as plastics, foams,other alloys and the like.

As shown in the section view of FIG. 22 , the manifold can include adiverter 2202 that can divert air flowing into the opening 2102 intolateral directions. The diverter 2202 (see FIG. 24 ) can be a pyramidshaped projection that projects toward the opening 2102 from thedownstream side 2208 of the diverter. In other examples, the diverter2202 can have other shapes such as cones, ramps, and the like.

The downstream side 2208 is shown in the downstream view of FIG. 23 . Ascan be seen, the downstream side 2208 of the manifold 1914 can includeone or more vents 2204 that may be spaced apart from one another toallow the airflow to be further separated and distributed from the entryof the airflow in opening 2102. In the example shown, the manifold 1914can include four equally sized and spaced vents 2204. The vents 2204 caninclude a panel that is perforated with an array of holes. When theairflow flows out of the manifold 1914 and into the grow zone 318, alaminar, well-distributed and stable air flow can be produced. Themanifold 1914 can include a vent 2204 that is aligned with a growpathway in the grow zone 318 so that a stable airflow is produced foreach grow pathway.

Referring now to FIG. 25 , the environmental or climate control aspectsof a ventilation system 2500 are illustrated. In the example shown, theair handler 2502 can operate to deliver air flow to the grow zone 318.The air flow can have predetermined characteristics or climateparameters including a desired humidity, temperature, flow rate, etc.The air handler 2502 can be coupled to the heat pump 2504. The heat pump2504 can operate to supply cold water 2506 (via a cold water loop, forexample) to the air handler to cool the air and/or remove moisture fromthe air returning from the grow zone 318. The heat pump 2504 can alsooperate to supply warm water 2508 (via a warm water loop, for example)to the air handler 2502 to warm the air to a desired temperature afterthe moisture is removed from the air and before the air is re-suppliedto the grow zone 318.

FIG. 25 shows a first mode of operation in which the ventilation systemoperates as previously described to first cool and dehumidify air thatis returned from the grow zone 318. As can be appreciated, the air iswarmed and collects moisture from the grow zone 318 as the air travelsthrough the grow zone 318. Thus, the air needs first to be cooled inorder to remove the moisture from the air. Before the air is re-suppliedto the grow zone 318, the air needs to be re-heated for optimal growingconditions. Thus, the warm water loop from the heat pump 2504 can warmthe air in the air handler 2502 before the air is re-supplied to thegrow zone 318.

FIG. 26 illustrates a second mode of operation of the ventilation system2500. In this example, the plants in the grow zone 318 may be in a stageof development or be of a plant variety in which the plants do notevaporate moisture in an amount that causes the airflow in the grow zone318 to collect excessive moisture and result in a high humidity content.When the air returns to the air handler, the air may not need to beconditioned to remove excessive amounts of moisture from the air. Whenthe returned air is in such a condition, the warm water from the warmwater loop 2508 can be combined with the cold water in the cool waterloop 2506 to lower the temperature of the air to a temperature above adew point. This prevents unwanted dehumidification that would otherwiseoccur. The air can then be re-supplied to the grow zone 318 without theneed to cool the air to condensate the moisture and then re-heat the airbefore re-supplying the air to the grow zone 318. Thus, energy savingscan result by operating the ventilation system 2500 in the second modeof operation shown in FIG. 26 .

FIG. 27 illustrates an example environmental or climate controlapparatus 2700. The climate control apparatus 2700 can include similarelements to the ventilation system 2500 previously described and canoperate in the first mode of operation and in the second mode ofoperation. In this example, the climate control apparatus 2700 caninclude various components that can operate to supply air flow havingpredetermined characteristics to the grow zone 318. The apparatus 2700can include one or more air handlers 2702 that can be fluidly connectedto the grow zone 318 via the plenum wall and the return wall (notshown).

The air handlers 2702 can be coupled to cold water transport assemblies2704 and to warm water transport assemblies 2706. The air handlers 2702can be coupled to the cold water transport assemblies 2704 via coldwater loop 2714. The cold water transport assemblies 2704 can providecold water via the cold water loop 2714 to cool the air when it returnsfrom the grow zone 318 as previously described. The cold water transportassemblies 2704 can include pumps and other suitable piping to guide andsupply the cold water to heat exchangers in the air handlers 2702.

Similarly, the warm water transport assemblies 2706 can be coupled tothe air handlers 2702 via warm water loop 2718. The warm transportassemblies 2706 can supply warm water via the warm water loop 2718 towarm the air before the air is re-supplied to the grow zone 318. Thewarm water transport assemblies 2706 can include pumps and othersuitable piping to guide and supply the warm water to heat exchangers inthe air handlers 2702.

The warm transport assemblies 2706 and the cold water transportassemblies 2704 can also be coupled to the heat dissipation assemblies2708. The heat dissipation assemblies 2708 can, in turn, be coupled tothe dry coolers 2712. The heat dissipation assemblies 2708 can exchangeheat from the cold water loop with the external ambient environment viathe dry coolers. The heat dissipation assemblies can also exchange heatfrom the warm water loop with the external environment via the drycoolers.

As further shown, the cold water transport assemblies 2704 can also becoupled to one or more heat pumps 2710. The warm water transportassemblies 2706 can also be coupled to the one or more heat pumps 2710.The heat pumps 2710 can exchange heat between the cold water loop 2714and the warm water loop 2718.

The air handlers 2702 can be used to collect condensate off the airhandlers and send the condensate back to the irrigation system forreuse.

The air handlers 2702, the cold water transport assemblies 2704, thewarm water transport assemblies 2706, the heat dissipation assemblies2708 and/or the heat pumps 2710 can be modular and/or pre-assembledprior to being installed at the indoor growing facility. The variousassemblies of the environmental control apparatus 2700 can be used tobuild different size indoor growing apparatuses. As can be appreciated,the number of components in the climate control apparatus 2700 isdependent on size of the grow zone 318. The various assemblies can bemodular in nature to be easily shipped to a building site for a growingfacility and then be coupled together according to the needs of thelocal facility. The components such as the air handlers 2702, the coldwater transport assemblies 2704, the warm water transport assemblies2706, the heat dissipation assemblies 2708 and/or the heat pumps 2710can be modular in that they are pre-assembled at a manufacturinglocation and are sized to fit in conventional shipping containers andshipped to the building location of the growing facility.

The climate control apparatus 2700 can be positioned adjacent to thegrow zone 318 as shown. The air handlers 2702, the cold water transportassemblies 2704, the warm water transport assemblies 2718, the heatdissipation assemblies 2708, and the heat pumps 2710 can all bepositioned inside the indoor growing facility but outside the grow zone318. This configuration can allow efficient and stable operation of theclimate control apparatus 2700. The dry cooler 2712 is positionedoutside the indoor growing facility so that it can exchange heat withthe ambient environment as previously described.

The ventilation system 2500 is able to capture and retain the condensatecollected from the returned humid air. The improved indoor farm systemdescribed herein can recycle the collected condensate. The collectedwater is cleaned and introduced into the irrigation system, wherenutrients can be added to then feed the plants in the grow zone 318. Theindoor farm system described herein, captures and recycles theunabsorbed nutrient rich water from the ebb and flood irrigation system,as well as the condensate collected from the return air. Thus, theindoor farm system described herein, is able to reduce or minimize theamount of water needed to grow the plants in the grow zone 318 comparedto other farming methods and facilities.

Referring now to FIG. 28 , a configuration of a growing structure 2800is further described. In this example, the growing structure 2800 can bepositioned in the grow zone 318 and can serve to hold the plants thatare growing therein. As shown, the growing structure 2800 can includeone or more side barriers 2802 that can separate the columns in the growzone 318. The growing structure 2800 can also include one or morehorizontal barriers 2804 that can separate the rows in the grow zone318. The side barriers 2802 and/or the horizontal barriers 2804 can bemounted to rack structure as previously described and shown or can beformed as wall members. The barriers 2802, 2804 separate the growingstructure 2800 in the various grow pathways 2806 as shown.

Each of the grow pathways 2806 can have a similar configuration and canbe sized and configured to support one or more floats or benchassemblies of plants. For example, each grow pathway 2806 can support abench assembly 2808. The bench assembly 2808 can have the configurationof the bench assembly 900 (FIG. 9 ) previously described. Each benchassembly 2808 can be supported on a set of rails 2810. The rails 2810can be a support beam or other structure that may include wheels,conveyors, rollers or other components that allow the bench assembly2808 to be pushed along the length of the grow pathway 2806 as theplants in the bench assembly 2808 develop and mature.

Each grow pathway 2806 may also include one or more lighting elements2812. Any suitable lighting elements can be used that can be controlledto emit a suitable light having predetermined characteristics such asintensity, wavelength, duration, etc. The lighting elements 2812 can besuitable LED lights, for example. In other examples, other lightingelements 2812 can be used. The lighting elements 2812 can be positionedabove the bench assemblies 2808 to distribute light to the plants in thebench assemblies according to a predetermined lighting schedule.

The growing structure 2800 can also include elements to allow for theirrigation of the plants in the bench assemblies 2808. The plants can beirrigated using an ebb and flood method of irrigation as previouslydescribed. To allow such a method of irrigation, the growing structure2800 can include one or more water dispensers 2816 positioned in eachgrow pathway 2806. The water dispensers can be connected to anirrigation system that include water sources. The water dispensers 2816can fill the bench assemblies 2808 with water according to apredetermined irrigation schedule to provide water and nutrients to theplants in the bench assemblies 2808.

Each grow pathway 2806 may also include a gutter 2818 that extends alongthe grow pathway 2806 at a position under the bench assemblies 2808. Thegutter 2818 can be channel or other conduit with an open are facingupwards that can allow the water that drains from the bench assemblies2808 to be collected. The collected water that drains from the benchassemblies 2808 during irrigation can be recycled through the irrigationsystem and re-used. Such a method of capturing and recycling the waterused during irrigation makes the growing structure and methods of usemore efficient than traditional or existing systems and methods.

The water dispensers 2816 can be periodically positioned along thelength of each grow pathway 2806. Only one dispenser 2816 is required tofill each bench assembly. However, multiple water dispensers 2816 canalso be used for each bench assembly 2808. The water dispensers 2816 canalso be individually controlled or controlled in groups relative to thewater dispenser's position along the grow pathway 2806. As previouslydescribed, the plants in the grow pathway are developing and maturing asthey move along the grow pathway toward the plenum wall. The plants ineach grow pathway 2806, therefore, may require different irrigationschedules because of the varying stages of development. The individualcontrol or group control of the water dispensers 2816 along each growpathway 2806 can provide for individualized irrigation schedules atvarious positions in the grow pathway. The lighting elements 2812 canalso be individually controlled or controlled in groups to deliverindividualized lighting schedules to the plants at various locations inthe grow pathway 2806.

While not shown in FIG. 28 , the growing structure 2800 can also includeone or more sensors or other information collection componentspositioned along the grow pathway 2806. In one example, the growingstructure 2800 can include temperature sensors, humidity sensors, airflow sensors, carbon dioxide sensors, and other sensors. The sensors canprovide information to a centralized control system regarding thegrowing conditions in the growing structure 2800.

The growing structure 2800 can also include cameras, or imaging devicesthat can capture photos or images of the plants in the growing structure2800. The images can be used to automatically determine a size, health,or other characteristics of the plants.

Referring now to FIG. 29 , an example float scraping apparatus 2900 isshown. The float scraping apparatus 2900 can operate to remove plants,growing medium or other materials from the floats after the floats areunloaded from the grow zone 318. The float can be inserted into theapparatus 2900 at the float input position 2902. The float can be movedalong the conveyor 2912 to the float exit position 2904. The floatscraping apparatus 2900 can include one or more scraping or removaldevices such as blades or wiping belts that can move along surfaces ofthe float to scrape plants or roots that may be extending above or belowthe surfaces of the float. In the example shown, the apparatus 2900 caninclude a lower scraper 2914 that can scrape the roots from the float.The apparatus 2900 can also include an upper scraper 2910 that canremove the plant from the float. The first hopper 2906 can serve toconvey the removed materials away from the conveyor 2912 using asuitable conveyor or belt mechanism. The second hopper 2908 can serve toconvey the materials removed by the upper scraper away from the conveyor2912 using a suitable conveyor or belt mechanism.

The example methods and apparatuses described herein may be at leastpartially embodied in the form of computer-implemented processes andapparatus for practicing those processes and/or the describedfunctionality. The disclosed methods may also be at least partiallyembodied in the form of tangible, non-transient machine readable storagemedia encoded with computer program code. The media may include, forexample, RAMs, ROMs, CD-ROMs, DVD-ROMs, BD-ROMs, hard disk drives, flashmemories, or any other non-transient machine-readable storage medium, orany combination of these mediums, wherein, when the computer programcode is loaded into and executed by a computer, the computer becomes anapparatus for practicing the method. The methods may also be at leastpartially embodied in the form of a computer into which computer programcode is loaded and/or executed, such that, the computer becomes anapparatus for practicing the methods. When implemented on ageneral-purpose processor, the computer program code segments configurethe processor to create specific logic circuits. The methods mayalternatively be at least partially embodied in a digital signalprocessor formed of application specific integrated circuits forperforming the methods.

The foregoing description of the embodiments has been provided forpurposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to beexhaustive or to limit the disclosure. Individual elements or featuresof a particular embodiment are generally not limited to that particularembodiment, but, where applicable, are interchangeable and can be usedin a selected embodiment, even if not specifically shown or described.The same may also be varied in many ways. Such variations are not to beregarded as a departure from the disclosure, and all such modificationsare intended to be included within the scope of the disclosure.

What is claimed is:
 1. An indoor growing facility comprising: a climatecontrol apparatus configured to produce a plurality of streams ofairflow, each stream of airflow having predetermined climate conditions;and a plurality of growing pathways wherein each growing pathway of theplurality of growing pathways is isolated from an adjacent growingpathway to allow introduction of a stream of airflow of the plurality ofstreams of airflow into each growing pathway.
 2. The indoor growingfacility of claim 1, wherein each stream of airflow of the plurality ofstreams of airflow has substantially similar climate conditions.
 3. Theindoor growing facility of claim 1, wherein the predetermined climateconditions comprise air speed, temperature, and humidity.
 4. The indoorgrowing facility of claim 1, wherein the climate control apparatuscomprises an air handler coupled to a distribution assembly, thedistribution assembly comprising a plurality of channels to separate anddivide an initial airflow into the plurality of streams of airflow. 5.The indoor growing facility of claim 4, wherein the distributionassembly further comprises a plurality of manifolds coupled to theplurality of channels, each manifold of the plurality of manifoldscomprising at least one vent configured to introduce one stream ofairflow to one growing pathway.
 6. The indoor growing facility of claim1, wherein the climate control apparatus further comprises a returnsystem coupled to the air handler that is configured to return theplurality of streams of airflow from each of the growing pathways to theair handler.
 7. The indoor growing facility of claim 6, wherein theairflow is modified after the airflow is returned from the plurality ofgrowing pathways to have the predetermined climate conditions before theairflow is re-introduced into the plurality of growing pathways.
 8. Theindoor growing facility of claim 1, wherein each stream of airflow ofthe plurality of streams of airflow comprise a laminar flow.
 9. Theindoor growing facility of claim 1, wherein the plurality of growingpathways are defined by a plurality of vertical barriers and a pluralityof horizontal barriers.
 10. The indoor growing facility of claim 1,wherein the climate control apparatus is separated from the plurality ofgrowing pathways by an enclosure.
 11. The indoor growing facility ofclaim 1, wherein the plurality of growing pathways are defined by agrowing structure comprising: a plurality of vertical barriers and aplurality of horizontal barriers; a plenum wall positioned on a firstside of the growing structure configured to supply the plurality ofstreams of airflow into the plurality of growing pathways; and a returnwall positioned at a second side of the growing structure opposite tothe first side configured to return air from the growing structure tothe first side.
 12. The indoor growing facility of claim 11, wherein thegrowing structure further comprises a loading lane positioned adjacentthe plurality of growing pathways and a loading elevator positioned inthe loading lane, wherein the loading elevator is configured to move inthe loading lane to selectively load plants into one growing pathway ofthe plurality of growing pathways.
 13. The indoor growing facility ofclaim 12, wherein the loading lane is positioned between the array ofgrow pathways and the return wall.
 14. The indoor growing facility ofclaim 13, wherein the growing structure further comprises an unloadinglane positioned adjacent the plurality of growing pathways and anunloading elevator positioned in the unloading lane, wherein theunloading lane is positioned on a side of the plurality of growingpathways opposite to the loading lane.
 15. The indoor growing facilityof claim 12, wherein the growing structure further comprises apropagation zone positioned between the loading zone and the returnwall, the propagation zone comprising a plurality of rows for supportingplants during a propagation stage of growth.
 16. The indoor growingfacility of claim 11, wherein the plenum wall is coupled to adistribution assembly to separate an initial airflow from an air handlerinto each stream of airflow of the plurality of streams of airflow. 17.The indoor growing facility of claim 11, wherein the plenum wallcomprises a plurality of manifolds, each manifold of the plurality ofmanifolds positioned adjacent to one another to form the plenum wall.18. The indoor growing facility of claim 17, wherein each manifold ofthe plurality of manifolds comprises a plurality of vents through whichthe air flow exits each manifold, each vent of the plurality of ventsaligned with one grow pathway of the array of grow pathways.
 19. Theindoor growing facility of claim 18, wherein each manifold of theplurality of manifolds comprises a diverter positioned centrally betweenplurality of vents, the diverter having a sloped surface to guideairflow toward each vent of the plurality of vents.
 20. The indoorgrowing facility of claim 16, wherein the distribution assemblycomprises a plurality of channels coupled between the air handler andthe plenum wall to separate the air flow, wherein a number of theplurality of channels corresponds to a number of the plurality ofmanifolds, each channel of the plurality of channels coupled to onemanifold of the plurality of manifolds.